Norway’s Magnus Carlsen, left, and Fabiano Caruana of the United States played to a marathon draw in the first game of their world championship match on Friday in London.
Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA

Caruana: "I was quite fortunate to end up with a draw"

“I was outplayed after the opening,” Caruana says, per Tarjei J Svensen. “It was a complicated position. Magnus started to outplay me. I think I was clearly losing, for a long time I was losing.”

He adds: “I think he missed Nh2 at the end of the time control. After that I think I am defending the position. After that it seems like it objectively should be a draw. There was many more hours of suffering, but at the end I managed a draw. ... This was not the most pleasant experience to defend this extremely long game with white. I think I was quite fortunate to end up with a draw.”

More from Caruana: “There was definitely a lot of nerves. It is a very different feeling playing the first game of a world championship match. ... Normally with white you shouldn’t be too happy with a draw, but considering my position I am very happy. I am relieved to have escaped.”

Carlsen: "I couldn’t quite find the knockout"

“It started very well, I was better on time and had a better position,” Carlsen tells NRK. “I couldn’t quite find the knockout before the time trouble. I played a bit too cautiously I think. Suddenly he got a chance to break loose. Then it was quite drawish.”

He adds: “I tried to find a way to exchange in order to play for a win, but I couldn’t find it. Then I just moved around hoping to force a blunder, but I didn’t succeed.”

Game 1 ends in a draw after 115 moves!

There it is: a seven-hour, 115-move draw. Four very exciting hours that saw Magnus Carlsen nearly become the first champion to win Game 1 of a world title match as black in 37 years, followed by three quite boring hours after a Carlsen blunder (40. ... Bxc3) which made the draw all but a foregone conclusion.

Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana played to a marathon draw in Game 1 of their world championship match.

The pawn exchange initiated by Caruana (105. Rxa6) and answered by Carlsen (105. ... Rxd4) means were down to seven pieces. It also means this game can officially continue for another 50 moves if the players want. And as the clock strikes 10 in London, the match is into the eighth hour. Some opener, this.

Game 1 looks like a clear draw, and has for some time, as it veers into the eighth hour. Photograph: World Chess Championship 2018

Not a whole lot has happened over the last few minutes. Except, of course, that Caruana and Carlsen have just made their 100th moves. The longest game in world championship history in terms by that metric? That would be Game 5 of the 1978 showdown between Viktor Korchnoi and Anatoly Karpov, which ended in a draw after 124 moves.

Magnus Carlsen ponders the board during Friday’s opening game of the world chess championship. Photograph: Facundo Arrizabalaga/EPA

On they go past the six-and-a-half-hour mark. A few more moves but no real progress. Here’s what the board looks like.

With nine pieces left on the board, it appears Game 1 of the world chess championship is petering out to a draw despite Magnus Carlsen’s best intentions. Photograph: World Chess Championship 2018, Game 1 (after 88 moves)

To be clear only black can win from here, but Caruana is not going to accommodate with the mistake that Carlsen requires to pull it from the bag. The latest sequence of moves amounts to little more than poking and prodding by Carlsen – 79. Kb2 Rg3 80. Kc2 Rg5 81. Rh6 Rd5 82. Kc3 Rd6 83. Rh8 Rg6 84. Kc2 Kb7 85. Kc3 Rg3+ – but Caruana should comfortably hold with neither player under time pressure. Still, the champion is making him earn this half-point and both players will no doubt be tired for tomorrow’s Game 2.

A good spell of action over the last 20 minutes. We clearly appear bound for a draw, but Carlsen doesn’t appear ready to step away without grinding Caruana a bit further. As those familiar with the Norwegian’s career are aware, he’s accustomed to marathons like these.

We’re nearing the end of Game 1 as the match approaches the six-hour mark. Photograph: World Chess Championship 2018

Predictably, the pace has slowed thanks to the time control after move 40. Caruana goes with (42. Qf7+) and Carlsen answers (42. ... Ka6), then an exchange of queens initiated by the the American (43. Qxg7 Rxg7), which no doubt will shorten the match and likely gives Caruana a better opportunity to hold. And on they go: 44. Re2 Rg3 45. Ng4 Rxh3 47. e6 Rf8. Now Caruana quickly plays 48. e7, opening a line that appeared headed for a draw.

Fabiano Caruana and Magnus Carlsen appear headed for a draw after a gripping opener to their world championship match. Photograph: World Chess Championship 2018

Spared a time crunch for the first time in hours, Caruana takes his time with 41. Qxf4 before a frustrated Carlsen answers with 41. ... Bd4. For a moment there Carlsen was poised to become the first champion to win Game 1 of a world title match as black in 37 years, when Anatoly Karpov defeated Viktor Korchno in the opener of their rematch in Merano, Italy. Now a draw appears far more likely, but it won’t come quickly. Strap in as this could be a long endgame.

Carlsen blunders with 40. ... Bxc3

What a turn of events! As time bears down on both players (38. c3 Be5 39. Kc2 Qg7), Caruana makes his 40th move (40. Nh2) with three seconds on the clock, giving him the desperately needed 50 minutes of extra time. But Carlsen’s response (40. ... Bxc3) lets his opponent off the hook! The look on the champion’s face says it all as he shakes his head in disappointment.

Another flurry of moves with 34. Nh2 h5 35. Rf2 Qg1 36. Nf1 h4 37. Kd2 Kb7. Caruana comes dangerously close to losing on time (again) but comes up with 38. c3 to give himself a bit of breathing room. Only two more moves until the much-needed added time, but the time pressure has allowed Carlsen to open a significant positional advantage.

The grandmaster Susan Polgar is no fan of 36. ... h4, calling it the sort of inaccuracy that Carlsen did not make when he was at his peak.

Caruana goes with 33. Ke2 and Carlsen with 33. ... Qg5. The American is inside a minute ... 50 seconds ... 40 seconds ... 30 seconds ... 20 seconds ... 10 seconds! We’re on the edge of our seats! At last Caruana pulls a knight into retreat (34. Nh2), but it reeks of desperation. Carlsen with more than 17 minutes and content to take his time with his opponent in survival mode. The computer analysis shows a clear advantage for Carlsen. Barring a blunder, he’s going to win the opening game of the world championship as black.

Squeaky-bum time for Caruana after another back-and-forth exchange (29. Nf2 Rg8 30. Ng4 Qe8 31. Qf3 Qxh5 32. Kf2). The American will have 2min 26sec to make eight moves, though he receives an extra 30 seconds with each move. White’s king looking a bit vulnerable at the moment.

The moves are coming more quickly (23. Nh5 Bxh5 24. gxh5 Nf4). A bit of a head-scratching sequence of moves for Carlsen, who appears to have let Caruana off the hook. According to the computer analysis it was 21. ... Nf8 where he surrendered his positional advantage, though the champion is still well ahead on time.

Next Caruana takes Carlsen’s knight (25. Bxf4) and Carlsen takes a bishop right back (25. ... gxf4). The American then opts for 26. Rg2 and after the 30-second increment he’s working with just over seven minutes compared to about a half hour for Carlsen.

The grandmaster Susan Polgar calls it a time-induced inaccuracy for the challenger.

Susan Polgar (@SusanPolgar)

25...gxf4 26. Rg2 This is an inaccuracy due to time pressure. As I said earlier, as well as in my pre-match assessment, Caruana MUST play faster. This will cause him big trouble if he does not fix it.

Caruana opts for 21. Nd1 and Carlsen doubles down on his ambition with 21. ... Nf8. A spicy pawn sacrifice by the world champion and he’s going for the whole thing. What drama! Caruana goes up a pawn on the next move (22. Nxf6) but Carlsen answers quickly (22. ... Ne6) and the American is under 10 minutes with 18 moves to make before the time control.

Caruana goes with 20. b3 and Carlsen answers with 20. ... Bf7. The challenger, moving more quickly out of necessity, takes a bit of a gambit with 21. Nd1, which he hopes will force Carlsen to think and cut into the time deficit. The American has a little over 16 minutes to make 19 moves before he gets more time, while the Norwegian champion is just inside the 40-minute mark as he ponders his 21st move.

Fabiano Caruana ponders the board during Friday’s first game of his world championship series with Magnus Carlsen. Photograph: Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for World Chess

Caruana opts for 19. g4, stopping the clock with a little over 18 minutes (and 21 moves until the time control). Carlsen, with nearly a half-hour time advantage, has a long think before going with 19. ... f6. Here’s a look at the board.

Fabiano Caruana finds himself at disadvantages in position and time in Friday’s opening game. Photograph: World Chess Championship 2018

During the build-up there has been plenty of speculation about how Carlsen and Caruana have been training, and a particular focus on what openings they have been working on. According to rumors, Caruana may have been getting some extra help from a small US-based website called Chessable, which specializes in training chess openings. The Guardian approached Leon Watson from Chessable but he refused to give anything away. “Obviously we have to keep the names of our users very secret,” he said. “It is very important to all chess players, not just grandmasters, to keep secret what their opening choices are because they don’t want the opposition to be able to prepare for them. However, one thing I can say is that we do have players of every level using the site.”

Chess: Magnus Carlsen against Fabiano Caruana – the likely strategies

Caruana blunders with 17. Nf6

Caruana’s 17th move (17. Nf6) is a blunder. He’s now behind on position and on the clock and Magnus Carlsen is playing for a win as black before move 20 in Game 1 of the World Chess Championship. What a turn. Carlsen quickly responds with 17. ... Nd7. Caruana answers with 18. Nh5 and Carlsen wastes no time with 18. ... Be5, pressing his time advantage. Less than 22 minutes on Caruana’s clock with 22 moves before the time control, meaning Caruana will need to average a move a minute to stay above water. Not ideal. The American will have to play very well to avoid losing here.

A group of young onlookers watch Friday’s opening game at the College in Holborn. Photograph: Facundo Arrizabalaga/EPA

Caruana takes his time and proceeds with 15. Raf1 and Carlsen responds with 15. ... Qd6, opening the path for his king to hide on the queenside. The clock keeps ticking down on the American challenger, who has less than 32 minutes (and counting) to make 25 moves before the time control. He’s had his hands full with Carlsen’s aggression in this opening game (1. ... c5 and 14. ... g5, most notably).

The American then goes with 16. Ng4 and Carlsen castles (16. ... O-O-O). Says Russian grandmaster Sasha Grischuk: “Sometimes Magnus can lose his sense of danger, but so far he’s playing this game brilliantly.”

Carlsen delivers something of a crowd-pleaser with 14. ... g5. It’s an ambitious stroke that suggests he’s not simply content to get rid of a black game. Meanwhile, reports of frigid temperatures in the playing hall appear to be confirmed by Carlsen’s decision to put a coat on.

Caruana goes with 14. Qd2 and Carlsen has plenty of time to ponder his response. Here’s a look at the board as it stands. The American challenger has a little over 46 minutes to make 26 more moves before the next time control. (Remember: the time control for each game is 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, 50 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game plus an additional 30 seconds per move starting from move 1.)

Caruana’s time management has been called into question during Game 1. Photograph: World Chess Championship 2018

After Carlsen responds with 13. ... h6, it’s Caruana eating up clock again. The position on the board is even, but the American is heading toward 46min remaining, which is a half hour behind Carlsen (1hr 16min 32sec).